Swivel joint assembly



y 1943- P. L. SNOWBERGER SWIVEL JOINT ASSEMBLY Filed Oct. 28, 1941 P/VUL L. Sammy/P 5 Patented July 6, 1943 SWIVEL JOINT ASSEMBLY I Paul L. Snowberger, Baltimore, Md., assignor to The Glenn L. Martin Company, Baltimore, Md.

Application October 28, 1941, Serial No. 416,794 2 Claims. (01. 1741521) This invention relates to a swivel joint assembly and more particularly to a combined electrical conductor and fluid supply line device whereby relative rotation is obtainable between I the two major portions of the device when one of said sections is fixed, and whereby the rotatable section thereof is quickly detachable from the fixed section.

The present invention has many broad applications of use where it is essential or desirable to connect electrical conductors and fluid supply lines between a rotatable member and a fixed member and be assured of continuous conductivity and flow. The further feature of being able to disconnect the combined electric and fluid circuits at will is accomplished in this device with a minimum of effort by a simple, longitudinal, sliding movement of the movable unit with the assurance that the circuits may be readily and properly re-established when the detachable portion is slipped into the stationary portion.

An example of one particular application of the invention is its use in rotating gun turrets of military aircraft, tanks and combat cars where the gunner is mounted in a rotatable or movable turret some distance away from the pilot or driver and it is necessary for the gunner to be in telephonic communication with the other members of the crew. In aircraft, it is also necessary that the gunner be supplied with oxygen during high altitude flights. Customarily, the oxygen mask and head phones form a permanent part of the gunners helmet and are furnished with a free hanging gas tube and phone cord which the gunner must connect with the corresponding outlets in the plane when he takes his place in the gun compartment. However, in planes having rotating gun turrets, this arrangement is impractical as the movement of the turret kinks and twists the gas tube and phone cord and leads to serious difliculties.

It will be appreciated that due to the relative movement of the gun turret and the airplane itself, a swivel or rotatable connection between the fixed and movable parts of the airplane for the telephonic wires and oxygen breathing supply must be found. or equal importance is the feature of quick detachability of these lines so that the gunners oxygen mask and telephone head set can be plugged in and out at will when 'he enters or leaves his gun turret.

All of these desirable characteristics are embodied in the instant construction as illustrated in the accompanying drawing and described in the following specification and claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal cross section of the device showing the component parts thereof in operable position.

Figrzis an end view of the casing showing the telephone wires and oxygen supply pipe passing through the end wall thereof.

Figs. 3 and 4 are vertical cross sections taken on lines 33 and M, respectively, of Fig. 1. looking in the direction of the arrows.

For convenience of description. the quick detachable swivel joint assembly may be considered as composed of two major sections I and 2, section I being fixed to a stationary part of the airplane and section 2 being relatively rotatable in and detachable from the fixed section. More specifically, the fixed portion I of the assembly may comprise an externally screw threaded thimble 5 positioned within an opening 6 in the floor or other stationary part or the gun turret l and held in position in the opening by means of insulating washers 8 and 9 and nut II).

The fixed section I of the assembly is held in rigid position against the under side of part I by the cylindrical member or casing I2 composed of a suitable insulating material. The cylinder I2 is internally screw threaded adjacent its ends for engagement with the external threads on the thimble 5 at one end and for engagement with the external threads on the pipe coupling I5 at the opposite end thereof. It will be observed that both the thimble'i and the coupling I5 abut the ends oi internal medial flange portion I 6 formed internally or the cylinder I2. Thus, when nut III is tightened, it binds the cylinder I2 carrying coupling l5 into fixed relation with plate I to fixedly secure the section I in position, and as will be developed hereinafter, this section forms a socket or receptacle for the multiple electric circuits and a fluid tight gas line,

The rotatable and detachable section 2 of the assembly may comprise an open ended metal casing 20 having an insulated sleeve 2I thereover and an end portion 22 oi reduced diameter; the insulating sleeve 2| overlying the casing 20 terminates in an end cover 23 having openings 24 and 25 therein for the passage of phone cable 26 and flexible oxygen hose 21 therethrough.

Lying centrally of and extending through the opposite reduced diameter end section 22 01' casing 20 is the oxygen supply pipe 30 which is secured in position therewith by apertured insuhose coupling 83 whose inner end is drawn up tight against the partition I and secured against rotation by set screw or rivet II. a

The end portion SI of the pipe I. is ground or lapped to create a leakproof, rotatable socket joint with the abutting interior surface ll 01' the coupling II which is similarly lapped. Such a fluid tight Joint or seal does not ordinarily have to be lubricated or packed, although it is within the purview of this invention to utilize gaskets. sealing rings or the like between these rotatable and detachable surfaces if desirable.

An integral. radial shoulder II is formed on the pipe 8|, beyond the lapped end portion thereoi to position thereon a concentric insulating sleeve I having an end flange It. The opposite end oi the insulating sleeve ll abuts the partition 3! through which the. threaded end of the pipe as extends.

A second concentric insulating sleeve II is fitted over the sleeve 4| carried on pipe 30 for the length of the reduced end portion of the easing II. This somewhat thick walled, insulated sleeve ll is provided with a series of longitudinal, equispaced. internal grooves ll within which are carried phone bus bars l'l, see Fig. 3.

As shown, there are three such electrical connectors or bars, although as many as necessary may be utilized. The second or outer insulating sleeve ll terminates in a radial end flange I. which lies over and insulates the outer end oi the reduced portion of the casing 20. In the space lying between the outer face of the flange I and the inner face of the flange 42 carried on the insulating sleeve ll there are positioned a plurality of spaced commutator or electrical collector rings ll. Each collector ring It is insulatcd from its adjoining ring by insulating separator rings II and cylindrical insulating rings 82. The phone bars 41 extending through grooves 48 are joined to their rmpective collector rings II by metal lugs I3 extending through openings in the insulating sleeve ll. The insulation ring Ii separates the flrst ring ll irom the other bars 41 of the succeeding rings while permitting them to pass along to the point where they are joined to their respective collector rings. Thus, each bar and ring is fully insulated from the other.

External. detachable. electrical connection with the rings III is established by the silver shoes 55 curved to fully contact the complementary curved grooves 56 formed in the exterior faces of the collector rings. The contact shoes are welded or brazed to radially extending, bronze strips 51 and these shoe and strip assemblies are mounted and carried in transverse slots 5! cut in the periphery of the thick central portion of insulating cylinder l2.

As shown, the phone connections are soldered to the ends of bars or clips 4! and to the strips I! with one of the wires of cable 28, Grounded to a clip II within the metal casing 2|. although the precise number and arrangement of these parts will depend on the phone system employed.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that relative rotational movement may readily take place between m jor portions l and 2 of thedevice while maintaining complete electrical contact through the several circuits and a fluid tight connection through the central oiwgen line. Furthermore, due to the arrangement of parts and the curved formation of the shoes I! con tacting the curved grooves 58 and the grounded fit of the pipe Joint surfaces 35 and II, the entire major portion 2 may be easily slipped into or out of engagement with portion l. Thus, there has been created a novel device which permits a fluid line and a plurality of electrical circuits to readily be detachable from a flxed plug or socket while allowing swivelable movement between the detachable and ilxed portions thereof.

What I claim is: i

l. A combined separable fluid joint and electrical connector comprising a fixed socket portion and a readily detachable, rotatable plug portion, axially alignable fluid conduits extending through both of said portions, a plurality oi electrical contacts carried on the exterior of said plug, and a plurality of complementary contacts carried on the interior of said socket, said contacts carried on the said plug comprising a plurality of conductor rings mounted on but insulated from the fluid conduit of the said detachable, rotatable plug portion, and the complementary contacts carried on the interior of said fixed socket portion comprise spring fingers extending through radial openings in the said socket to bear against the said conductor rings when the said plug is positioned in the said socket.

2. A combined separable fluid Joint and electrical connector comprising a fixed socket portion and a readily detachable, rotatable plug portion, axially alignable fluid conduits extending through both of said portions, a plurality of electrical contacts carried on the exterior of said plug, and a plurality of complementary contacts carried on the interior of said socket. said fixed socket portion consisting of a cylindrical sleeve of insulating material having a pipe nozzle secured in the outer end thereof and one or more electrical contact arms extending into the interior of the socket through the said insulating sleeve; the said detachable, rotatable plug portion consisting of a fluid conduit having an end portion adapted to be inserted into the said pipe nozzle, an insulating sleeve encompassing the mid-section of the said fluid conduit and one or more commutator rings mounted around the insulating sleeve on the said mid-section or the conduit whereby the said interior electrical contact arms in the wall of the socket contact the commutator rings on the insulating sleeve when the end of the fluid conduit is inserted in the said pipe nozzle.

PAUL L. SNOWBERGER. 

